Golf club



March 6, 1934. Q MENSlNG 1,949,970

GOLF CLUB Filed June 29, 1951 Patented Mar. 6, 1934 Carl F. Mensing, Tarpon Springs, Fia., assigner to Limbershaft Geit Chih Company, Tarpon Spi-ings, Fia, a corporation of Florida Application dune 29, 1931, Seria-l No. 547,49)

l. Ciaini.

This invention relates to golf clubs, and more especially to that class having limber built-up shafts as distinguished from the conventional stiff steel or solid wood shafts, lirnber shafts of the general type under consideration being exemplified by United States Letters Patent No. 1,662,712, issued March 3, 1928. Limber shafts of the type mentioned have been manufactured, sold and used in large volume, and give the golfer among other advantages, the great one of accuracy of direction in driving a golf ball as set forth in said patent. When made with a relatively soft material core, however, it was found that the shaft was subject to warpage or deformation, not only from heavy usage, but also, if care were not exercised in so storing the club in off-seasons that the shaft would be retained in a straight or undeviating line. The fact that warpage or deformation would occur was objectionable, although 2g the shafts could be readily straightened and would then give ecient service. The objection, while chiefiy psychological, nevertheless prevented general acceptance as a standard club, as many upon nding the shafts deformed would be likely to revert to the more conventional stiff hickory or metal shaft type club upon the ungrounded assumption that the limber-shaft clubs could not be depended upon if restraightening was resorted to, or because it was expected the straightening operation would have to be gone through at too frequent intervals.

Another objection was that liinber shafts with relatively soft material cores, Were not sufficiently rigid against twisting or torsional strains, especially when used on irons for play along the fairways or in said traps, although very desirable in such connection because of their efficiency in absorbing shocks incident to impact of the club head on a ball or the ground, this absorption of shock minimizing the fatigue of hands and arms.

In the endeavor to produce a club possessing the advantageous and lacking the disadvantageous features of the club of said patent, it was found essential that the shaft have a relatively hard resilient core of angle shape in cross section, and that the most satisfactory material to give limberness, strength, and resistance to twistingstrains and warpage and also in shock-absorbing capacity, without undue weight, should be made of wood, preferably good hickory and of one-piece construction although the core might be of 1raininated type. it was also found that an angular core gave a better and more substantial anchorage or foundation for the attachment of the sheathing strips, and that the latter when fitted to the at faces of the core, cooperated materially with the core in effectively resisting strains and in resisting deformation or warpage.

The prime object therefore, of the invention is the provision of a club having a shaft possessing the desirable features of both limber and stiff shafts, and the capacity to resist Warpage or deformation, and twisting Under strain applied by impact of the head on the ground or ball, and which also possesses the desirable qualities of lightness, strength, durability and economical construction.

Another object is to produce a golf club having an angular and preferably one-piece Wood core covered or encased by a sheath composed of 1ongitudinal resilient or limber strips of wood secured tightly upon the core and to each other with any heat and water-proof cementitious material so that the shaft will be resistant to any injury resulting from heat or dampness.

A further object is to produce a shaft composed of an angular core of wood or equivalent material and a sheath consisting of strips of Wood secured together at their side edges and some or all of them having inner faces engaging and conforming and secured to the respective faces of the angular core, so that any tendency of the sheath to turn or rotate around the longitudinal axis of the core, would be obviated unless the core also turned to accommodate such movement.

With the above-mentioned objects in view, the invention consists in certain novel and useful features of construction and combinations of parts as hereinafter described and claimed; and in order that it may be fully understood, reference is to be had to the accompanying drawing, in which:-

Figure 1 is an elevational view of a golf club embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged plan View showing the shaft with an angular core and a sectional sheath in which alternate strips conform at their inner faces to and t iiatly against the respective faces of the core.

Figure 3 is a, fragmented View showing the club head and part of the shaft sheath in section.

Figure 4 is a similar View of a slightly modified construction.

Figure 5 is an end View of the shaft with all of the sheath strips fiatly engaging the respective faces of the core.

Figure 6 is a modication of the construction of Figure 3, in that the core appears as triangular in form.

Figure 7 is another modication indicating strips fitting around respective corners of an angular core.

In the said drawing, 1 indicates a club head of wood or metal, the type of head being of any conventional form for the particular use intended, that is it will be preferably of wood for driver, brassy and spoon, preferably of metal for putting, and of metal for use in or along te fairway and in sand traps.

The head will have a socket 2 for the reception of the shaft. The shaft has a wood or equivalent core 3 of angular` form in cross-section, preferably square, and the shaft will be cemented and/or otherwise secured rigidly to the head.

The shaft includes a sectional sheath 4 cemented or otherwise rigidly and non-rotatably secured upon the core, and with the latter, extends through the neck 5 and head 1, to the lower face of the latter, as shown in Figure 4, the sheath being cemented in the head. The core and sheath may also be pinned to the head as indicated at 6.

The sheath, in the preferred form, is composed of a plurality of sections 7 tted flatly against and cemented to the at sides of the core, and a series of quarter sections 8 fitting between and lling the spaces between sections 7 and cemented to the latter, the external surfaces of all the sections conjointly describing a circle. The grip 9 of the club may be of any suitable material, and at its upper and lower ends is protected by thread wrapping 10, as common practice, there being also a protective wrapping 1l at and near the junction of the sheath and neck of the club, as also common practice. The cement used will of course be of such nature as to withstand dampness and heat, as it is depended upon almost wholly, to retain the sheath sections in place.

The sheath is of vegetable type, preferably what is known as South American rattan as such Wood is light and possesses limberness, strength and durability, and cooperates most efficiently with a hickory wood core in absorbing shocks of impact and in holding the face of the club in xed relation to the core. It has flexibility to bend with the core and at the same time cooperates with the latter in resisting twisting strains imposed on the head, it being noted that the resistance of the sheath to twisting action is the greater because in all cases, as apparent by reference to strips 8 of Figure 2, and to Figures 3, 6 and 7, the corners of the angular core guard against any movement of the sheath strips around the longitudinal axis of the core. In Figure '7, is suggested the idea or" using strips corresponding in number to the faces of the core but provided with angular grooves 12 receiving the respective corners of the core. This construction is the same in principle as those previously described. It has a probable advantage in point of increased resistance to torsional strain attended by probable disadvantage in point of cost.

From the above description and the drawing, it will be apparent that I have produced a golf club embodying all of the features of advantage set forth as described, and while I have described and claimed the preferred embodiment of the same, it is to be understood that I reserve the right to make all changes properly falling within the spirit and scope of the invention and without the ambit of the prior art.

I claim:-

A limber golf club comprising a head and a shaft therefor consisting of an angular core of relatively stiif and resilient wood and a sheath therefor of strips of rattan extending longitudinally of and secured to the core and to each other, the rattan strips being softer and more flexible than the wood core and the shaft as a whole, being sufficiently limber to deflect from a straight line to a curve under the weight of the head when the shaft is held at rest in a horizontal position by gripping the top end of the shaft in the hand, the shaft also heilig characterized by suflicient resiliency and resistance to torsional strain to properly control and direct the head throughout the stroke and impact with a ball.

CARL F. MENSING. 

